Horatio Nelson

Born: 1758 Died: 1805

Of all the famed names of British Naval history Nelson stands prominent. His dash and courage could have been scripted by the best modern day screenwriter.

Nelson was born in Norfolk in the latter half of the eighteenth century and with the rest of his generation found himself at war with Napoleonic France and her allies. His memeory is also undeniably entangled with romance. His affair with Emma Hamilton was the talk of society for some time and has been a source of interest ever since. Nelson’s Naval exploits had already made him the talk of the nation. His victory at Aboukir Bay and his audacious destruction of the Danish fleet, possible allies to Napoleon, at Copenhagen had warranted him a reputation for being a man of his own kind.

With Trafalgar won the nation mourned the loss of one of it’s saviours. Nelson was to be remembered with the erection of Nelson’s Column in London. It stands as a tribute and a sign of eternal gratitude to a pioneer of naval tactics which led to the threat of foreign invasion being lifted.